I need an easier way to get from front to back

[Naio]

It's hard to get from the driver's seat of my van into the rear living space. Mainly this is because the seat and footwell are low compared to the rear floor, and my knees are not so great.

Do you have any ideas on how I could improve this situation?

I'm to the point where I am considering looking at other rigs to see if they are better. How high is YOUR seat, off the main floor, and what chassis do you have?

[jwmII]

Would one or two handicap bath handles attached to the roof stringers so you could have a hand hold work. I have found having a good solid hand hold makes a world of difference. Use the large diameter heavy duty jobs sold at the hardware stores. Lengths vary.

[Naio]

Navegatpr, thank you so much for your post, which I missed until now.

Are you talking about making the seats farther back than the stock adjustment allows? Or higher? I don't think either would work for me, as I am small :).

Part of my problem is that I have to scoot the seat so far forward to reach the pedals that the steering wheel is close to my chest. This makes it hard to get out of the seat.

I tried out a friend's full sized van and it was like night and day! Flat floor and a couple extra inches between the seats made it SO easy to get into the back!

I have been looking intensively st specs and prices and will test drive a few FS vans. But, you know, I am kind of fond of my little van's nimbleness. Its small size is its best and worst feature :).

The main reason I want to get into the back easily is to take rest breaks when driving. Today I thought about another option: take out the passenger seat when traveling alone, and replace it with a platform (storage underneath). That I could stretch out on for breaks, without going into the back. I need to unsquish from that steering wheel sometimes, even when going for a walk is impractical. And not having the passenger seatback sticking up would make the whole space more open and maybe easier to get around in.

So I might mock that up when I get a chance in the next few weeks and try it out. Or buy a bigger van!

[navegator]

I placed a 3 by 2 inch square tube between the seat frame and the seat, this was done by unbolting the seats from the frame not the floor, four bolts and drilling eight holes on the square tubes on the 2 inch side, so that the tubes bolt on to the frames and the seat bolts on to the square tube, make sure that the tube is thick enough or thicker than the metal on the frame and the seat, and the holes are dead center on the 2 inch side.

The bolts, nuts and washers should be of industrial grade strength, the head of the bolt should have 5 lines radiating out to the corners, do not use Chinese junk from Home Depot or Lowe's, get them at a hardware store that actually carries American made bolts.

I also replaced the center console with the bigger one from Ford, I offset the passenger seat back by 3 inches with the holes that were drilled for the seat, and 2 inches for the drivers seat,the angles at the front were cut at a slight angle do not cut to close to the bolt holes just enough for shoe clearance, we are both tall so the extra leg space came in handy this allows us to go back, the wife for goodies in the fridge or pantry and me when it is raining upon arrival at the campgrounds.

navegator

[westend]

Naio wrote:
I have a minivan, and that may very well be a minivan thing! I am very happy to hear yours is almost level. Is yours a Savanna?

Does anyone here know about Fords? Or Dodges?

Could you please state what year and model of Ford van you have? I doubt very much it is a "mini-van" unless it says "Windstar" on the exterior.

[NCWriter]

Test drive a Sprinter van and see how it feels. With the high top construction, it's easy to stand up and walk through, since they were designed and built as delivery vans where the driver is in and out of the back all day.

Used ones aren't all that cheap but the Diesel engine will last and hold its value.

[Naio]

I have a minivan, and that may very well be a minivan thing! I am very happy to hear yours is almost level. Is yours a Savanna?

Does anyone here know about Fords? Or Dodges?

[tred0956]

What kind/year van do you have? On mine, foot well and floor between seats is the same height.

[Naio]

Thanks, tred0968. When you say chassis floor, do you mean the footwell where the gas pedal is, or the space between the 2 front seats?

In my rv, the gas pedal area is very low. If other rigs are not like that, well, maybe I should trade up!

[gbopp]

lc0338 wrote:
Maybe you can search this site

Interesting article. 🙂

[tred0956]

Class C on Chev chassis, house floor is only an inch or two above chassis floor, very easy to move from seat to house. In fact, we often have morning coffee in the chassis seats to take in the view.

[lc0338]

Maybe you can search this site